On April 21^st at the Freudenberg-NOK Plant in Tillsonburg the Oxford County Consortium of Excellence in Manufacturing got together for an SIG Session on Customs Compliance & Exporting Best Practices.

 This session featured 3 Guest Presenters;

Our first presenter, Kelly Mehlenbacher of Livingston International presented on the following topics;

Customs Compliance - Exporting

• What does proper documentation consist of?
• What elements are included in overall compliance & how do you know if you are compliant?
• What training programs are offered to assist businesses in export?
• What should the relationship between the exporting business & their customs broker look like?
• How do you keep current on changes to regulations, HS codes, etc?
• Where do you turn for answers on exportation when required?
• What documentation do you required in case of an audit by Canada Border Services?

Livingston International is a leading North American provider of customs brokerage, transportation and integrated logistics services. Interestingly enough Livingston was founded in 1945 in Tillsonburg, Gerry Livingston's export packaging firm incorporated, under the name Livingston Lumber & Manufacturing Ltd.

Our second presenter was Andrea Clements of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

Andrea Clements has been with the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade for 10 years.  She has had postings in both Ottawa and Japan working on trade policy and business development.  In her current role as the trade commissioner for south-western Ontario, she is working with clients in the region to identify opportunities globally through the Trade Commissioner Service (TCS).

• The Trade Commissioner Service is Canada's most comprehensive network of international business professionals located in over 150 cities overseas, including 23 cities in the United States. 
•  They can help your company succeed globally and lower your costs of doing business.
• The Trade Commissioner Service can support you whether you're looking to export, invest abroad, attract investment, or develop innovation and R&D partnerships.

Our third presenter was Debbie Walker of the Ontario Ministry of Economic Development and Trade.

Debbie is the Director, Community Export Development for the International Trade Branch of the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade. Debbie's discussion centred on introducing EMC members to the programs and services offered through the International Trade Branch, Ministry of Economic Development and Trade.  The International Trade Branch (ITB) assists Ontario suppliers of goods and services to develop targeted strategies for international markets by providing expert market briefings and one-on-one consultations.  In addition, ITB delivers a number of exporter education seminars across the province as well as leading business-to-business international trade missions and organizing Ontario pavilions at key international trade shows.

This session also included a plant tour and group continuous improvement exercise.

All three presenters presentations have been posted on the London/Oxford EMC Homepage; http://www.emccanada.org/membersonl/ontario/london

The London/Oxford Consortium has multiple SIG sessions each month at local member facilities. For more information any upcoming events please contact

Jason Bates, EMC London/Oxford

jbates@emccanada.org  519-281-1176